


Somebody Save Me

by LittleRedSpark



Category: Xiaolin Showdown (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-07
Updated: 2013-09-07
Packaged: 2017-12-25 22:25:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/958294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleRedSpark/pseuds/LittleRedSpark
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"It took a phone call to one of my best friends to bring me back to the best years of my life, but not without dragging me through hell first."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Raimundo reclined in his chair, feet propped up on his desk in the area reserved for their team. A team consisting of the three male ex-Xiaolin Dragons in Training; Raimundo, the brunette, green eyed cocky Dragon of Wind, Omi, the bald, round-headed Dragon of Water with beady black eyes and large, blonde, blue eyed Clay, Dragon of Earth.

Omi was sitting at his own desk, filling in paperwork from a previous case and constantly glancing at Raimundo's perpetually relaxed posture with a sigh and a shake of his head.

Clay was doing much the same at his own desk, the most decorated of the three with photographs of himself and his fiancée, Emmaline and various trinkets and memorabilia from his family ranch in Texas.

Omi's desk was relatively empty, a habit from his upbringing in a temple in China. The contents of his desk consisted of two photos; one of himself and his girlfriend, Lilia, and another of the trio of boys alongside a small girl with black curly hair and blue eyes and a tall man with a small beard wearing a blue vest and a green dragon wrapped around his shoulders.

Raimundo's desk, on the other hand, held a single framed photograph of the rest of his large family and at the centre, himself with his arms wrapped around the petite curly-haired girl from the photo on Omi's desk.

Clay's phone rang suddenly, breaking the silence which had only been previously been broken by the sound of pen on paper, jolting Raimundo from his daydreams and causing his feet to swing to the floor with a loud 'thump'.

With a smile at Raimundo's bewildered expression as he was interrupted in his afternoon nap, Clay pulled his phone from his pocket. One glance at the caller ID, his smile quickly vanished to be replaced with a confused frown. Snapping the phone open, a quick "Hello?" was managed before his expression morphed to one of concern. "Woah, woah! Calm down, partner. What happened?" He listened for a few moments before he half rose, turning to grab his badge and jacket. "Okay, stay where you are. I'll be right there." He snapped the phone shut and shoved it back in his pocket, pulling on his jacket.

"What's the rush Clay?" Raimundo simply stared at Clay's frantic and rushed attempts at attaching his badge to his belt.

"Come on," Clay threw Raimundo's jacket at him. "We're going."

"Wha- why?" Raimundo continued to stutter half-hearted protests as he joined Omi in readying himself to leave. "I thought I was supposed to be the leader?" He muttered to himself as he hurried after Clay and Omi.

* * *

The three approached the door which was swinging open. Clay stepped inside first, followed closely by Omi with Raimundo bringing up the rear. "Mario?" Clay called out softly, causing Raimundo's head to snap up, the name obviously triggering a memory. "Mario, you can come out now. It's safe, we're here."

A small figure flung itself into Clay's arms with a cry of "Uncle Clay!" and began to sob into his shoulder.

"Ssh, partner, you're alright, you're safe now." Clay rubbed the young boy's back and he pulled back, rubbing the tears from his green eyes.

"I am, but they're not." His voice trembled, matching the terrified expression in his eyes. "They're in trouble, Uncle Clay! You and Uncle Omi have to help them!"

"Don't worry Mario." Omi approached from behind Clay, smiling supportively as Clay placed Mario back on his feet. "We'll help them. We just need you to tell us what happened."

Mario nodded, rubbing the last of his tears from his eyes. "Well, the three of us were just messing around, like we always do when mummy works out. Mummy went to make us lunch and I went to get my book. The doorbell rang and Ciara went to get it – you know how she is." Clay and Omi smiled wryly and Raimundo stood watching this interaction in confusion and marvelling at the maturity of this young boy.

"Okay, so Ciara opened the door. Then what happened?"

"I heard a woman telling her that they were looking for mummy and then Ciara calling for her. Once I heard mummy come into the hallway, I heard her tell me in my head to stay in my room. That was when I knew something was wrong." His voice broke on the last sentence, hands trembling.

"I heard the woman talking for a while, something like 'well, well, well. Long time, no see,' and then she said…well, I can't remember exactly but she was trying to get mummy to come with her but mummy just said 'fat chance you old hag!'"

Clay grinned. "That sounds just like her." Raimundo moved off while Clay and Omi continued to question Mario. 'It's not like I could be any help,' he thought to himself. 'I have no idea who they're talking about.' Although, he still listened to the boy's story as he looked through the house.

"Then the woman said," he took a deep breath before continuing. "She said, 'oh, but you will. After all, we have unsettled business and these nice men do too with a certain other agent and we both know that you are his sole weakness. Now, you will come with us, after all, it would be such a shame to harm such a pretty little face.'"

"Was she talking about your mum or Ciara?" Omi asked, concern building up in his beady eyes.

"I'm not sure, but by the way mummy reacted, I would say, Ciara. She said, 'alright, I'll go, but leave Ciara out of it. She's done nothing to you.' But the woman just laughed and said 'oh, but then how would we ensure you did as you're told? And after all, we can't leave such a little girl alone in the house.' Mummy must've told Ciara in her head to stay quiet or she would have said something about how I was there too."

Clay nodded. "Yes. She would've tried to ensure they didn't know about you."

"And then they left?" Omi asked gently and Mario nodded.

"You will find them, won't you?" His wide, anxious eyes made it impossible to resist.

"Of course we will. Won't we Omi?" Omi nodded earnestly. "Raimundo?" When he didn't receive a reply he turned to where he had last seen the agent but found he was no longer there. Twisting round, he found him by the bookcase, staring at the framed photograph in his hand. Clay sighed. He knew what photograph that frame held and what it would mean to Raimundo.

In that photo frame was a photograph of the small family who lived in this house; Mario, his sister Ciara and their mother. It was of their last birthday and depicted the three of them on the sofa, smiling brightly at the camera.

Raimundo stared at it. Stared past the image of Mario, a blue party hat atop his black curls, his green eyes shining merrily. Stared past the image of who he assumed to be Ciara, chocolate brown hair pulled back into a ponytail under another party hat, her brown eyes twinkling with mischief. He simply stared at the young woman between them. The same young woman in the photograph on Omi's desk, the one who he had his arms around in the sole possession on his own desk.

"Kimiko."

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

"Did they mention any names?"

"Not for the men, no, but I heard mummy call the woman Wuya."

At this Raimundo's head snapped up, his eyes wide in alarm. "Alright Mario, you go and read in your room while I talk to Omi and Raimundo." Mario nodded and headed towards the aforementioned room, tilting his head and shooting a calculating look at Raimundo before disappearing from sight. "Wuya. Why did it have to be Wuya?" Omi shook his head. They all knew that Wuya still held a grudge against Kimiko from when the four of them had lived in the Xiaolin Temple. Not long after Raimundo had been made leader, Wuya had started on her personal vendetta, no longer seeming to care about the other Dragons, focused solely on Kimiko.

Similarly Chase Young had kept his focus on Omi, Hannibal Roy Bean had stepped up his game in targeting Raimundo and Clay was left to deal with Jack Spicer and all of his hired goons.

Jack had given up on his ambitions of world domination after he and Ashley had decided to settle down to raise their child away from the forces of evil and attempt to give the three of them a normal life; the four Dragons had managed to trap Hannibal Bean in the Ying Yang World once more and destroyed all of Chase's Lao Mang Lone soup, leaving him to challenge Omi to a showdown over Dojo, where if Chase won, the four would hand over Dojo so Chase could make a new batch of his soup and if Omi won, Chase would give up his rein of evil. Omi won and Chase was held to his word by the ancient magic and if he slipped up, Dashi himself would appear to him and drag him to hell.

Wuya, however, had gotten away and the four hadn't heard from her since and Master Fung had let them return to the 'real world' after they had all reached their final birthdays and become fully fledged Xiaolin Dragons, since they no longer had any training to do and there was no more evil; but only on the condition that they kept up their martial arts and elemental training to keep in shape and just in case any evil was to emerge and they were called back to the temple.

While Clay and Omi were lamenting over what Wuya's involvement would mean, the full extent of the events had sunk into Raimundo's mind. "She's been here." He spoke quietly but in the silence of the house and with their enhanced hearing, Clay and Omi heard him perfectly. "We've been living in the same city when I've been searching for her for the last eight years…and you knew! Why didn't you ever tell me?" he rounded on Clay and Omi, expression demanding, voice accusatory.

But you don't live with someone for six years, doing everything together, without learning to gauge their true emotions. Raimundo was afraid and in pain. Afraid for Kimiko's safety as well as that of her daughter. Hurt over the fact that Kimiko had hidden from him for eight years, not giving him a chance to explain, a chance to…well, just a chance, after the last time he had seen her. She had jumped to conclusions and had disappeared without listening to his side of the story.

"Uh, that's not all." Clay spoke up after a moment in a quiet voice. "She's also been working at the Bureau. The Director was annoyed at first when she refused to work on our team but he was okay with it when he learnt that she wished to work in the Special Victims Unit. I think he was just glad to be able to kiss up to some of the world's most prominent figures by simply saying 'we've got one of the Xiaolin Dragons on your case'."

"Kimiko made us promise." Omi spoke in an apologetic voice, staring at the floor. "She made us swear on Dashi's grave." Raimundo softened somewhat towards his friends. To a Xiaolin Dragon, swearing on Dashi's grave was the most sacred promise you could make and the punishment for breaking such a promise…well, let's just say it makes you quiver in fear merely hearing the words.

"Mario said that there was one woman – Wuya – and she referred to men, as in plural, who had a vendetta against another agent which they were going to solve through her." Clay mused aloud as Omi sat, eyes narrowed in thought. Raimundo paled. "What is it, partner?"

"Think about it," Raimundo began slowly. "Wuya mentioned multiple people who wanted revenge on, and I quote, 'certain other agent', indicating that both of them knew the agent."

"You think she meant you?"

"She also mentioned how Kimiko was this agent's sole weakness. Who does that sound like?" Clay and Omi half-smirked, it sounded very much like Raimundo. "Wuya saw us when we were dating. She would know almost as well as you two do, I'd do _anything_ for Kimiko."

"Well, yes, but who are the men?"

Raimundo raised a brow. "Can you think of no one who wants me dead and would have no qualms about kidnapping a young woman and her daughter, probably intending to kill them too, and Wuya would willingly ally with, now that she's in her body but devoid of her powers?"

Clay and Omi's eyes widened so much that it would've been comical in any other situation. "You mean, you think that Kimiko and Ciara are at the mercy of Wuya and Los Ayudantes?"

Raimundo nodded grimly. "Think like Wuya for a moment, like we used to have to. You want Kimiko at your mercy, you want to…kill her," He swallowed heavily at the reminder of the amount of danger Kimiko was in. "What's the easiest way to do it? And now, think like Los Ayudantes, like we've been doing for the last eight years. You want revenge on me. You meet a woman who knows my weakness and exploiting it will help you both to exact your revenge. The logical conclusion is that you team up, kidnap Kimiko, taking Ciara too to force her to comply, to lure me there. Once I'm there, pretend to release Kimiko if I hand myself in, but you really hand her over to Wuya, then, Los Ayudantes can have their revenge on me and Wuya can have her revenge on Kimiko." He finished grimly.

Clay sighed. "She must've been so focused on ensuring you couldn't find her through any of the old Xiaolin tricks that she forgot to block the normal way, leaving herself vulnerable. She must've forgotten that there might be other people after her." They knew that if any of them found information that one of the others had used their Xiaolin abilities to ensure they didn't know, they would write it off in their heads as impossible, a misprint, forget it almost immediately… Kimiko wouldn't have had to worry about Raimundo finding out through the ways a normal human would find someone's whereabouts and so didn't think to protect that.

"We'll work on trying to find Los Ayudantes; our best bet is probably waiting for them to contact you Raimundo, but we're going to try our best anyway. Right. Omi, you search for any traces of the men's life forces around the doorway and see if we can match it to anyone we know. I'll search our databases for any known locations that Los Ayudantes frequent. Raimundo, you go and talk to Mario."

"But, I can help, I have to!"

"No, Raimundo, you need to calm down. Working yourself up isn't going to help anyone. Talk to Mario and come and tell us if he remembers anything else."

Raimundo sighed in defeat, Clay was right. "What am I supposed to talk to him about? I don't know him. You and Omi are the ones who do." He seemed reluctant to talk to the young boy for one reason or another.

"Then get to know him." Clay suggested. Seeing the look on Raimundo's face, he sighed and added, "I'm sure you'll find something."

Clay wouldn't meet Raimundo's eyes and Raimundo knew he was withholding something from him, probably something else Kimiko had made them swear not to tell him. He sighed and headed into the room the boy had disappeared through.

Mario looked up when he heard someone in the doorway. Growing up with a mother who had inhuman hearing was tiresome to his mischief loving sister but to him, it was fascinating and she had taught him some of the tell-tale things to listen out for and the sensations he would feel to know when someone was behind him. "I know Uncle Clay told me to go to my own room, but I wanted to look at mummy's old photographs. From when she was really a teenager and not magically kept that way for eternity." He told the man with the same hair as his sister's who stood in the connecting doorway between his and his mother's rooms. Ciara's was on the other side.

"I know who you are." He continued, standing up to face the man he knew so much and yet so little about. "You're Raimundo Pedrosa, aren't you?" It was more of a statement than a question but Raimundo nodded anyway.

"And you're my father."


	3. Chapter 3

"Excuse me?" Raimundo stared in shock at the boy before him.

"You're my father." Mario repeated, speaking confidently. "Mummy told me all about you; me and Ciara. She told us how the two of you are the Xiaolin Dragons of fire and wind and that Uncle Clay is earth and Uncle Omi is water and you met at the Xiaolin temple in China fifteen years ago. I knew it was you when you came in with Uncle Clay and Omi – mummy said that she doesn't work with them because you do – but I wanted to make sure." He held out the photograph album in his hands and Raimundo took it to see a photograph of himself and Kimiko on his eighteenth birthday, him as the last of the four to stop aging, when the two of them had been happy together. "Ciara has your hair and mummy says I have your face structure and your family's eyes but not yours because yours are a special colour because you're a Xiaolin Dragon, mine are like Auntie Maria's eyes."

Raimundo sighed. Did everyone know about these kids and keep in contact with Kimiko, except him? Even his own family? "How old are you?"

"Me and Ciara will be eight in a five months – I'm five minutes older than Ciara, though!" He announced proudly.

"You're a smart kid." Raimundo smiled at him and Mario's face broke out into an ear-splitting grin.

"Mummy says that I'm the smartest boy in the world! And then Ciara says 'what about me?' and mummy says 'the cheekiest girl in the world'!" Raimundo laughed, though feeling a twinge of sadness in his heart. He had missed all that. "Mummy says that I got both your intelligence and hers and Ciara got both of your impulsiveness." Raimundo laughed harder. Poor Kimiko, raising a child with both of their impulsiveness combined. "When we asked her why she named us Mario and Ciara, she said 'I'll tell you someday'. Do you know?"

"Yes." Raimundo cast his mind back on that particular conversation with a smile. "Your mother and I were bored on one of our days off at the temple-"

"Days off?"

"From training."

"You trained every day?"

"From 6:30am." Mario wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Well, we were bored and your mummy said 'imagine we were different genders'. I, of course, was very confused but she explained and we decided to come up with a name for the other – I came up with a name for your mother if she was a boy, and she came up with a name for me if I was a girl."

"And you picked Mario and Ciara."

"Yep." Raimundo was glad that he was the twins' father for many reasons. He felt strongly for the young boy, despite only knowing him for about twenty minutes and he couldn't bear to imagine Kimiko with anyone else. It felt like a knife through his heart, only made stronger by the thought that she had used their names for her and someone else's children.

"You're certainly a very chatty kid too!"

Mario looked indignant. "Well, I'm trying to catch you up on the seven years you missed – that's a long time, you know!"

"I know, believe me."

"Mummy said – when I asked why you weren't ever here and why she didn't want to work with you – that you did a bad thing...did you?"

Raimundo regarded the oddly perceptive boy and his thoughts drifted back to that day.

* * *

_-Flashback-_

" _Raimundo?" He looked up from where he had been searching the crowd, his friends and large family from Rio, for Kimiko, to see Sishi, one of his good friends from his childhood and his best – human – mate's twin sister. She stood before him, fidgeting nervously with her bracelet. "Can I, uh, talk to you for a minute? In private?"_

" _Sure, but make it quick. We're announcing the reason for the party in a couple of minutes."_

_He followed her into a small room just outside the function room where the party was being held. Once inside, she resumed her fidgeting, taking a deep breath before starting to speak. "I, uh, we've known each other for a long time, right? We were good friends as kids; my brother's still your best friend..." Raimundo nodded slowly, unsure of where this was headed. "Well, I needed to tell you...I really like you. I have for a while now and I've really missed you for these last six years you've been at the temple and then, I haven't seen you since you moved back here and I realised..." She was rambling now and Raimundo's eyes widened as he realised where this was going. He needed to stop her – now! – before it went too far and she got hurt._

" _Sishi-"_

_But she continued on as if she hadn't heard him. "I realised that, though I was afraid that you wouldn't feel the same way, if I didn't tell you then I would lose you for sure..."_

_She seemed to have run out of words. "Sishi, I-"_

_And suddenly she was pressed tightly against him, kissing him. As soon as Raimundo realised what was happening, he pushed her away._

_But many things happened in that moment of shock. The door opened and a gasp was heard as Raimundo pulled away. He turned towards it – it was Kimiko and her face was frozen in shock. "Kimiko-"_

_It was as if Raimundo's voice broke the trance. "What the hell, Raimundo Pedrosa?"_

" _Kimiko, please, I-"_

" _And with Sishi of all people!" Kimiko continued to rant, her face crumpling from shock to a look of utter betrayal. "Sishi; one of my best friends/your best friend's twin sister, Sishi?"_

" _Kimiko, I didn't-" He took a step towards her, reaching for her, but she stumbled backwards, pain written all over her face._

" _I can't believe you." She whispered brokenly, the hurt breaking through the anger. "And here of all places? You know what; I don't care anymore. We're done! Here," She pulled the ring from her left hand and threw it back in Raimundo's face. "Take your stupid ring back!" And she dissolved in flames on the spot._

_Sishi stared at the place where Kimiko had stood seconds ago for a moment before turning to Raimundo. "You two were...this was your_ _**engagement** _ _party?" Raimundo nodded, a single tear rolling down his face. "Oh, God, I'm so sorry! What have I done?" She muttered, horrified, but Raimundo was no longer paying attention, merely staring at the position from which the love of his life had vanished from it._

_-End Flashback-_

* * *

Raimundo fingered his medallion, feeling the ring which hung behind it, even after eight years. He refused to let go of one of the only things he had left of her.

He counted in his head and realised that on that fateful day, Kimiko would have been two months pregnant and would probably have told him either that night, or very soon.

Perhaps it wasn't just her temper, as he had assumed, that prevented her from listening, but a mixture of it and her pregnancy hormones which may have made her even less tolerant and all the more upset.

"It was a misunderstanding." He finally answered the boy – Mario, his _son_. "She thought I did something horrible but was too upset to let me explain, due to her temper and that was only made worse by the fact that she was pregnant at the time."

"So...it's my fault?" Mario asked in a small, teary voice.

"What? No, no! Come here," Raimundo cradled the small boy to his chest. "Ssh. No, it's not your fault Mario." He lifted him and carried him to his own bed and tucked him in. "You've had a hard day, try to get some sleep now."

* * *

Meanwhile, across town, Kimiko was chained to the wall, the tall figure of Wuya towering over her. "Look at the great Xiaolin Dragon of fire, now. Completely at my mercy." She laughed, raising the hairs on the back of the necks of the gang members in the room, and, as if to prove her point, reached out and slapped Kimiko hard, across, the face. Kimiko's head snapped to the side, the cheek that Wuya's hand hadn't made contact with smarting too as the skin grazed off the wall.

"Mummy!" Kimiko turned her head in the other direction to face her daughter, huddled in the corner, wrists and ankles bound tightly with rope, as they didn't need to worry about _her_ burning her bonds off.

"Let her go." Kimiko spoke quietly to Wuya. "She is no part of this – she does not need to see this."

Wuya smirked. "Oh, but she is a vital part – plan B." Kimiko's eyes widened. "It is obvious whose she is and if you die before dear Raimundo gets here, these lovely gentlemen can use her to bargain with him."

"Don't you dare touch her!" Kimiko spat out, flailing against the fireproof chains.

Wuya simply laughed and slammed Kimiko's body back against the wall, painfully.

"Mummy!"

Kimiko turned once more, wincing as she felt the small trickle of blood from the back of her head. Ciara's eyelid's drooped as Kimiko's magic her and she slumped forwards, head on her chest, in an enchanted sleep.

Wuya laughed again. "You shouldn't have done that. Now we have no reason to hold back as your daughter can no longer hear you scream." She beckoned the gang members towards her and they approached the wide eyed and struggling Kimiko, malicious smiles on their faces.

The night air was filled with the sound of Kimiko's agonised screams and Wuya's cold, high laugh.


	4. Chapter 4

Clay stepped into the bedroom and a small smile spread across his face at the sight before him. Raimundo was stretched out on his back on Mario's bed, flicking through the photo album that Clay knew contained photographs from their own youth at the temple, the year after they had all graduated and Kimiko and Raimundo had lived together in Rio, and the photographs of the last seven years he had missed in the lives of the love of his life and their children. Mario lay asleep at his side, curled into him.

Raimundo sensed Clay's presence and gently moved Mario's head from where it was pillowed on his chest to his pillow, standing up from the bed and following Clay back to the living area where they had set up base.

"Well, what have we got?"

"Omi matched the life forces to two known Los Ayudantes members – Hector Rodriguez and Miguel Aceitoso."

Raimundo groaned, leaning back in his seat on the sofa, tilting his head back and rubbing his hand over his eyes. "The brawns of the group and two of the most brutal." He sat up again suddenly, his movements quickening to his battle reflexes in his agitation and fear. "If they're the ones who have got Kimiko and Ciara, then they're in a whole lot of trouble."

"I know, I know." Clay sighed worriedly.

"Those two are the worst criminals I have ever met. They're the ones who do most of the dirty work for the gang."

"Raimundo…" Clay sighed.

"They have no remorse, no ethics and no mercy…"

"Raimundo-" Clay tried interjecting gently but Raimundo continued his panicked ramblings.

"They're even getting cocky now, since they haven't been caught and the only reason for that is that we had no evidence."

"Raimundo-" Clay repeated; his voice a little more forceful this time.

"We've gotta do _something,_ Clay! We can't just sit here and-"

"Raimundo!" Clay yelled, finally cutting through Raimundo's ramblings as he fell silent. "I know." Clay added gently, watching Raimundo deflate.

"I'm sorry, Clay. I just…"

"I understand. If it was Emmaline…"

"Where's Omi?" Raimundo asked, noticing that Omi wasn't with them.

"He's out calling for back-up. Even we'll need back-up in this case. We can deal with Wuya and get Kimiko and Ciara, and leave it to the human agents to get the gang members. It'll make their day." Clay noted Raimundo's face and quickly added, "We'll help if needed, of course. There's no way anyone's getting away."

"So, you've got something?"

Clay nodded. "Both Hector and Miguel work in the same construction group and they're fixing up an old abandoned warehouse – construction crew is off for the weekend…it's the perfect place."

Raimundo jumped up as Omi walked back in. "Did you make the calls?" Clay questioned Omi, receiving a nod in reply.

"Calls?" Raimundo piped up, his gaze flickering between the two of them. "Why the plural?"

"One to the bureau, to request back-up and one for a babysitter. We can't leave Mario alone when we go to get his mother and sister."

"Of course, but who did you call?"

The door swung open once again to reveal a young brunette with eyes the same shade as Mario's. "Maria?"

"Oh, Raimundo!" Maria drew her older brother into a large hug. "I'm so sorry! Both for this and for keeping it from you, but Kimiko made me promise and when I did, there was this spell that meant if I tried to tell you, I suddenly forgot what I was talking about."

Raimundo chuckled. "So that's what that was about, all those times you were so spacey? I thought you were losing your mind!"

She pulled a face at him before turning serious once again. "But, how are you? Really." Omi and Clay retreated to the kitchen.

"I'm…well, not too great, to be honest." Raimundo sighed.

"That's understandable. You just found out you're a father to almost eight-year-old twins, you have the right to feel a bit-"

"Oh, that's not it. I'm ecstatic to find out I'm a dad. I mean, yeah, I'm a little upset that I missed the first seven years of their lives, but…" Raimundo trailed off, a small smile forming on his face. "I'm just worried about Kimiko and Ciara. I learn that I'm a father and one of my children is in harms way because of a grudge on me by manic gang members! And their mother, the love of my life? After eight years, I have finally found her, and she…" He shook his head. "I have to save them, Maria."

Maria looked sympathetic. "You will, Raimundo." He smiled weakly at her before standing to head to the kitchen. "Oh, and Raimundo? When you do, don't let her get away again!"

* * *

The three of them headed back to their office to collect their bullet-proof vests and meet with their back-up. They rode to the warehouse in the agency van, the back-up agents loading their weapons, as the three filled them in on the situation.

The van pulled up, silently, a short distance from the warehouse; just enough that it wouldn't be seen, giving the gang a chance to escape. "Right," Raimundo stepped forward, easily sliding into 'leader-mode' as amiably called by his friends, eyes determined. "Everyone remember their objectives? Just to be sure," he turned to the back-up agents. "Concentrate on Los Ayudantes members. Your priority is to arrest them, for interrogation. If necessary, return fire, but only kill as a last resort."

When this was met with nods, he turned to Omi. "Omi, you focus on Wuya, if needed, Clay and I will back you up when the girls are safe. Clay, you get Ciara, she knows you best." Omi and Clay nodded, their eyes too narrowing in determination.

"I'll get Kimiko." Everyone knew better than to dispute this idea. Raimundo was the best agent they had and Kimiko was in the most danger. His feelings for her only increased the need for him to be the one to save her.

The group stepped towards the warehouse slowly and silently, Raimundo in the lead with Clay and Omi close behind him. They cut the lock and pushed the door open, Raimundo freezing the air around it to stop the sound vibrations from travelling.

Continuing forward, they soon came to another closed door, behind which, the human agents could hear murmured voices and the three Xiaolin Dragons could hear full conversations. Raimundo raised his left hand, holding up three fingers. "Ready?" He mouthed to the others. "Three... Two… One…" Lowering a finger with each number, he reached the end of his countdown and with a determined nod, knocked the door open with the force of the wind.

The group rushed inside, moving with precision to their assigned positions, drawing their weapons and shouting, "FBI!"


	5. Chapter 5

Kimiko slumped against the wall once again, panting. Her head lolled, her eyes half shut as Wuya's taunting laugh rang out through the air. The men had taken their turns in torturing her but eventually they became too afraid of Wuya; of her chilling laugh and the manic light in her eyes at Kimiko's pain, and had backed off, retreating to the corner and watching with sadistic grins.

"Not so tough now, are you?" Wuya taunted, a smirk on her face as she grabbed Kimiko by the chin and raised her head.

A groan from the corner of the room drew both of their attention and they turned to see Ciara sitting up slowly. "Mummy?" She asked groggily before she remembered where she was and cowered in the corner, watching Wuya and her mother with wide eyes.

"Awww, little Kimiko's running out of energy." She mocked in a baby voice. "Can't even keep a little girl in an enchanted sleep. Pathetic." She spat in Kimiko's face, forcing her roughly against the wall once more. Ciara managed to hold back her cry, but couldn't contain her gasp of horror. "You're weak. I don't know how you got the powers over fire – they should've been _mine_!"

She turned to the gang members, who repressed a shudder as an evil grin spread across her face. "I don't think she's going to last much longer, boys. We may have to revert to plan B after all!"

Kimiko's eyes widened and she renewed her struggling, but to no avail. Putting Ciara in a magical sleep had drained her, as had enduring Wuya's torture. The fact that Ciara's magical sleep had lifted was a bad sign. It meant that she simply didn't have the strength to keep it up. That she was running out of energy, out of time…

Wuya sneered. "You don't still think you have a chance to get out of here alive, do you? Either of you?"

From the corner, Ciara whimpered and Kimiko's resolve hardened. It didn't matter what happened to her, as long as Ciara survived. Clay or Omi would take care of the twins. Or Raimundo's family would. They would have someone to love and care for them. They would be fine without her.

'And they will be.' She thought to herself. 'I will get Ciara out of this. Mario would've called Clay and Omi and they must be pretty close to finding out where we are, now. If only I could hold on a little longer…'

Wuya saw the flicker in Kimiko's face, Kimiko not having the strength to mask her emotions or thoughts, and smirked, shaking her head. "Your hope is in vain. By the time anyone finds you, you will be long gone."

She turned to Ciara with a smile that made her whimper again. "Say goodbye to your mummy."

The door swung open and the quiet room became emerged in chaos. A group of people entered the room, weapons aimed, shouting "FBI!" The men with the guns headed straight for the gang members stationed around the room, who surrendered, lost without their leader.

Wuya smirked as she recognised the three unarmed men heading for her. "Well, well. The gang's all here!"

Omi sneered. "It's game over, Wuya. Surrender or suffer a humiliating defeat."

"You haven't changed much, have you, Omi? Well, at least you've mastered slang." She conceded before lunging at him.

The move was exactly what the trio was hoping for. With Wuya occupied fighting Omi, there was nothing blocking Clay and Raimundo's paths to the two captives.

"Uncle Clay!" Ciara cried as Clay approached and he bent down with a smile, tugging the ropes from her wrists and ankles. She leapt into his arms. "Boy, am I glad to see you. Is Mario alright?"

"Mario's fine." Clay chuckled at the charismatic little girl before him.

"I knew he was." Ciara smiled happily. "We twins know these things about each other. I just wanted you to confirm it." Her eyes twinkled with mischief and Clay smiled again, comforted by the knowledge that Ciara was alright, both physically and mentally. After all, he had to deal with two Xiaolin Dragon parents now, if one of the twins was hurt on his watch.

Omi seemed to be winning in his fight with Wuya and Clay was helping Ciara to her feet and leading her outside to safety, but Raimundo noticed none of this. He was fully focused on the sight before him.

Kimiko was chained to the wall, wrists bound in what he assumed to be fire-proof shackles, secured above her head and her ankles bound with the same chains. She was bruised and bloody, obviously badly beaten, possibly whipped, which made Raimundo feel sick. Her clothes were torn too, her one-shoulder t-shirt revealing her shoulder which wasn't spared and was bleeding. Her calf-length tracksuit bottoms may have once been coloured, but now they were simply a dark red from the blood still splotched on them at random intervals.

Horrified, Raimundo rushed forward and released her ankles first, then her wrists, catching her as she collapsed in his arms. Her eyelids fluttered and her eyes fixed on his face. "Rai…" she murmured in disbelief, her voice hoarse and laced with pain.

"Sh," he soothed, working his hands over the various cuts and bruises speckled over her body, healing them, starting with the most severe, the cut on the back of her head, still oozing blood. "It's okay, you're gonna be okay, you're safe now." His voice quivered with worry but she seemed to trust him, or rather, his abilities, for she nodded her head slowly.

Clay and Omi approached behind him. "We've got Wuya in the van in handcuffs. Perhaps we could find another puzzle-box of some sort."

He grunted in agreement with Omi's statement as Kimiko's eyelids drooped. "Come on, Kimiko. You've gotta stay awake until we have the doctors make sure that you're okay. That I didn't miss anything."

"Ribs…" She murmured softly and Raimundo quickly set to work on healing them, wincing at the extent of damage he found and the thought of how it was obtained.

"I'll call Maria." Clay muttered before leaving to do so.

Omi nodded and left too. "We can take her in one of the agency vehicles that came with us."

Raimundo nodded, seemingly too focused on Kimiko to do much else. He lifted her gingerly, and cradled her to him, afraid of hurting her further. "Rai…" he turned his head to her as she mumbled into his neck from where her head was on his shoulder. "I'm gonna be okay, you know… You're great at healing…"

He smiled gently and lifted her into the car, holding onto her tightly as Omi sped away.

* * *

"Ciara!" Raimundo and Ciara looked up from where they had been sitting at Kimiko's bedside to see a blur launch itself at Ciara, who launched herself from her seat to meet it. "You're okay! You're alright! They told me you were, and I knew it, of course, but I had to see for myself."

The twins embraced tightly, each terrified by the thought of losing the other. "Is mummy okay?" Mario asked hesitantly, climbing into the seat on Ciara's other side, the two of them still clutching hands, as if afraid to let the other go.

"Yeah, she's fine. Just a little tired." Raimundo replied, a lot more relaxed, now that he had a professional opinion.

"Mummy's a little low on energy. Her magic sleep thingy even stopped working, that's how tired she was."

Mario's eyes widened and Ciara nodded solemnly. "But mummy's magic sleep always works! It's how she gets us to sleep on time the night before our birthday!"

"Well, it didn't work because of the nasty lady."

"The nasty lady doesn't like mummy 'cause she's the Xiaolin Dragon of Fire and she wanted the power for herself. She knew her when she was at the temple. Isn't that right, daddy?"

"Daddy?" Ciara turned to Raimundo, her own eyes widened too. "You're daddy! That's why you were so worried about mummy – you love her!"

"Yes, the bad thing mummy said he did was a misunderstanding."

Ciara's mouth formed an 'o'. "Then, when she wakes up, daddy, you gotta tell her, while she's still a bit tired. That way she can't run away from you, she has to listen, 'cause she's stuck here." She chirped brightly. Raimundo chuckled. What Mario had told him about Ciara had been spot on – she had both his own and Kimiko's impulsiveness combined; a real handful.

'Daddy', they had called him. A wide smile spread across his face as he surveyed the people in the room. His family. He recalled Maria's words from earlier and smiled at the twins, who were now yawning and whispering conspiratorially. He looked back to Kimiko, still asleep on the bed and grasped her hand in his. "You're not getting away from me again, Kimiko Tohomiko." He vowed, glancing at the twins who were grinning at him as they drifted asleep. "I've got the twins on my side."


	6. Chapter 6

Kimiko woke up and the scene before her brought a smile to her face. Raimundo was on the chair beside her bed, hand in hers and his head resting next to them. Curled up into his side were the twins, hands still clasped tightly.

She sighed. The twins finally knew their father. She was glad of that, of course. She had felt bad keeping them from him, but…she was just so hurt that she couldn't bear to be near him. Although, the twins knowing him would mean that he would spend a lot more time around them, around their small family. 'I don't know if I can handle it.' She thought with a miserable sigh. 'I should have moved on by now – it's been eight years! But I can't. I just can't forget him. And that makes it hurt even more; still feeling this way for him, when I saw first-hand just how little I mean to him…'

She reached out and pushed a few strands of hair out of Raimundo's face, trying her best to repress tears. His eyelids twitched and opened, revealing his emerald eyes which bored into hers, relief shining in them. 'Damn. I forgot how easily Xiaolin Dragons wake up.' She chastised herself internally as she met his gaze. "Hi. I, uh, see you've met Mario and Ciara."

His gaze flickered to the sleeping twins and his face drew into a familiar grin. "Yeah. You've done a great job with them."

Kimiko looked down, fiddling with the sheets in her free hand. "I'm sorry for keeping them from you. I just… I wasn't ready to see you again." 'I'm still not,' she finished internally.

"That's alright." He squirmed under the incredulous look Kimiko fixed upon him. He almost chuckled at that. 'No wonder the Director wanted her to work on our team. We work pretty damn well in the field and as a team – which would've been improved by Kimiko's involvement – but we often have to take a long time interrogating suspects. Clay's too nice, Omi gets confused and I usually get them to crack after a while. But one look from Kimiko, and they would confess in a heartbeat, reduced to a quivering heap when the powers of Kimiko's and my own glare.' "Alright, fine. I'm a little annoyed that I've missed the first seven years of their lives and the last eight years of yours, but you had your reasons."

She looked down at the bed again, guilt welling up inside.

"I, uh…" She looked up again, intrigued by Raimundo's apparent nervousness. "I'm gonna follow some of Ciara's advice-"

"Ciara's advice?" Kimiko's eyebrows rose in a look not unlike the previous one, but this one was laced with worry. "The seven year old with the combined impulsiveness of the two of us? That Ciara?"

"Yeah." He laughed. "You're stuck here and you can't escape so you're going to have to listen to me."

"Of course." Kimiko sighed, rolling her eyes and shaking her head with a smile. "That's the sort of advice she would give."

"It's true though!" His grin slipped from his face and it instead took on a serious look. "Look, Kimiko, about that day eight years ago-"

"It's alright Raimundo, you don't have to explain. I understand."

"But you don't, so I do."

Kimiko blinked for a moment. "O-kay…"

"I wasn't cheating on you. Really." He added after seeing her doubtful look. "Sishi approached me and told me she needed to tell me something and she led me to that room to do so in private. She said some things about how she had liked me for a long time and I tried to explain to her, to tell her about our relationship, but she kept cutting across me and then she kissed me and I pushed her off as soon as I realised she was but you came in and then…" He trailed off from his desperate rambling, his eyes begging Kimiko to believe him.

She placed her free hand above their joined ones. "I'm sorry for just taking off like that, Rai. I should've stayed and listened to you. I should've known you wouldn't do that, and I think somewhere deep inside I did, but I just…"

"You thought your fiancé was cheating on you at your engagement party, with one of your best friends. You were hurt and angry. I get it. Your infamous temper flared and the fact that you were pregnant didn't help, only made it worse." Raimundo spoke gently and wiped the few tears from Kimiko's cheeks. "I get it."

"I was going to tell you that night too. After we made the announcement to your family that we were engaged, I was going to step forward and make a second announcement – that I was pregnant."

"I figured you were going to tell me that night. It would've been so you."

She grinned brightly at him, her focus returning to the sleeping figures still by Raimundo's side. "They really seem to have taken to you."

"Yeah. Mario's quite the chatterbox."

"Mario?" she asked sceptically. "Are you sure you don't mean Ciara?"

"Nope. It was, oh, how did he put it? Oh yeah, 'filling me in on the seven years I missed.'"

"That's my boy." Kimiko giggled.

"Our boy." Kimiko flashed him another dazzling smile. "So, now that we've gotten everything explained, why don't you come and work on our team at the Bureau? It'll be just like old times!"

"Except with human criminals rather than demonic beings hell bent on world domination?"

"Yeah. Something like that."

* * *

The next day, everything had gone back to normal, as if the whole ordeal hadn't happened, but with a few changes. The twins now knew their father and he knew of them, and Kimiko was set to move to the guys' team the next day.

The twins had gone to the park with Maria, leaving Raimundo and Kimiko alone with the house. The two had been slouched on the sofa when Maria left, winking at Kimiko as she went, with two happily waving seven-year-olds hanging on to a hand each.

Raimundo watched Kimiko carefully, she seemed to be battling with something, fiddling with the sleeves of his FBI hoodie, which completely drowned her, but she didn't seem to care. She seemed to gather up her courage and sat up, drawing her legs beneath her and staring him in the eye. "I want my ring back." Her voice quivered almost imperceptibly with nerves.

"You…" Raimundo's face slowly lit up with hope. "You mean…?" She nodded, smiling tentatively, her smile widening as she watched Raimundo's wide grin spread across his face.

He reached up and pulled his medallion from around his neck. Her brow furrowed, "What are you-" she stopped short, eyes widening as she saw him draw her ring off of it. "You…you kept it…on your medallion?" She spluttered as he turned the ring between his fingers. "But…why? I mean…I know what it means to you…"

"Nowhere near as much as you mean to me." He stated softly, but surely. "I wasn't about to give up the only link I still had to you, even for a moment. So I put it on my medallion string. So I could wear it at all times. So, in a sense, I could almost feel you with me."

"What did I do to deserve you?" Kimiko mumbled as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"You're you; you're perfect." Raimundo whispered, leaning his forehead against hers as she slid the ring back onto its place on her finger. "I love you."

"I love you more; so, so much." Kimiko mumbled back as they intertwined their fingers.

"Not possible." He contradicted as he leant in and their lips met in a tender kiss.

"Mummy! Daddy!" Ciara cried out as she and Mario ran from the door towards their parents, who separated and scooped the two of them up.

Maria watched from the entranceway to the room, smiling at the family's moment, watching as they embraced, laughing and the twins telling of their time in the park.

She noticed the sparkle back in both her brother's and who she considered a sister's eyes and her eyes caught sight of the ring sparkling, once again, from its rightful place on Kimiko's finger. She grinned. "Just wait 'til everyone hears about this!"


End file.
